A troubled mega-dairy in the Columbia Basin is now on the auction block. The sale of Lost Valley Farm comes after more than a year鈥檚 worth of pollution complaints and scrutiny by regulators.
Lost Valley Farm 鈥� just off Interstate 84 near Boardman, Oregon 鈥� promised to be one of the state鈥檚 largest and most sustainable dairies. on those promises.
over the proposed 30,000-cow operation before it began producing milk. Violations piled up, mainly from improperly storing manure and other waste.
After facing a lawsuit from the state, the dairy鈥檚 owner eventually A trustee determined the best thing to do was to close the farm and sell it to an 鈥渆xperienced鈥� buyer.
One buyer, Canyon Farm LLC, has put in a $66 million offer to kick off the bidding process. The auction is scheduled for Jan. 31.
In the meantime, the estate is working on a cleanup plan with both the Oregon departments of Agriculture and Justice.
鈥淟ost Valley Farm has more than satisfied the requirements of the remedial sanctions order,鈥� Lost Valley spokeswoman Liz Fuller said in an email. 鈥淭he work has focused on getting the dairy in compliance with its permit and provide ongoing protection for the environment."
So far, workers have drained lagoons so that they don鈥檛 overflow when it rains and made 鈥渟ubstantial repairs鈥� to the waste management system, according to a prepared statement.
鈥淒ata from regular groundwater monitoring events and analysis by environmental experts has and continues to show that the dairy has not caused harm to public drinking water supplies or the environment,鈥� the statement says.
About 20 percent of the Lost Valley Farm cattle herd has been sold already. The rest will be put up for auction in February to help pay off the dairy鈥檚 creditors.
Ivan Maluski, with Friends of Family Farmers, said that the Oregon Legislature needs to reform the state鈥檚 confined animal feeding operation, or CAFO, permit system.
鈥淭his whole debacle has revealed serious failures in Oregon鈥檚 CAFO program, as it relates to these industrial-sized operations,鈥� Maluski said.
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